"Hey."
Ginny looked up from the Quidditch magazine she'd been flicking through at the kitchen table at Grimmauld Place, to see Hermione enter, having just changed from her work clothes to something more casual.
"Hey," she replied easily. "Thank God it's Friday, yeah?"
"God yes," sighed Hermione, sitting opposite Ginny. "It's great to be working and all, but I really look forward to weekends off, you know?"
Ginny nodded. "I do right now, but once the Quidditch season starts, my weekends will get pretty busy."
"Is Kreacher off at Hogwarts?" asked Hermione, not seeing the old house elf.
"Either there or at Andromeda's," said Ginny. "I think it's just us for dinner."
Harry and Ron had moved into 12 Grimmauld Place as soon as Ginny and Hermione had left for Hogwarts and they started Auror training. But with both their partners now finished, Harry had suggested they all live together. So far it had worked out, although it had only been three months.
Ginny had been whisked away for an intense two week training course with the Harpies not long after finishing at Hogwarts, so she was slightly concerned that the trio dynamic would already be established and she would feel like an add on, an extra.
But she needn't have worried, for once she returned to her new home, the two couples made an effort to allow each couple alone time. Apart from Hermione often walking in on Harry and Ginny cuddling together on the sofa as she flooed in, there had been no embarassing encounters.
Ginny schedule meant she was often up earlier than the others and therefore, home earlier. At least once a week they dined with Andromeda and Teddy, as well as Bill and Fleur, for Ginny wanted to spend time with her niece, Victoire.
Likewise, Hermione and Ron shared regular dinner dates with her parents, and often Hermione would bring dinner to WWW, where Ron would go after Auror training to help George make the wheezes. Angelina Johnson, who was seeing George on a casual basis, had begun showing up to help too, and Hermione enjoyed the other witch's company.
Luckily they also enjoyed the nights when it was just the four of them, or sometimes with Hannah and Neville, or Luna. Ron and Harry had quite the competition about who was the better cook, which suited both Ginny and Hermione fine.
"Where's Harry?" asked Hermione.
"Upstairs in our room, he's going to see Teddy for a couple of hours," said Ginny.
Harry and Ginny had the second floor, which had a master
bedroom with a bathroom next to it, and a smaller bedroom on the other side, which they planned to decorate for Teddy.
Ron and Hermione had taken the first floor, which was the bedroom that Hermione had shared with Ginny when they had stayed at Grimmauld Place following Arthur Weasley's run in with Nagini. It too had a bathroom next to the bedroom, as well as their own sitting room.
"What about Ron?" asked Ginny, getting up and going to the cupboard.
"Oh, he said he was going to stop off at WWW, he had an idea for a wheeze he wanted to talk to George about," said Hermione.
"It's great he's been helping George out," agreed Ginny.
Hermione nodded. With it just being the two of them, she had some things she wanted to ask Ginny about.
"How's Harry?" she asked.
Ginny poked her head out of the cupboard and raised her eyebrows.
"Don't you have lunch with him and Ron at the ministry every day?" she asked knowingly.
"Yes." Hermione flushed and pulled the magazine Ginny had been reading to her, and began looking through it without any interest.
"I know you couldn't care less about anything in that magazine," teased Ginny. "So what's up?"
Hermione looked on with interest as Ginny brought out a bottle of wine and some crackers, and cheese and dip from the fridge. She brought the items over to the table and set them down, before going and grabbing two wine glasses and returning.
"How are you...and Harry?" she asked, lowering her voice deliberately.
Ginny looked left and right, then leaned in, conspiratorially. Hermione eagerly leaned in too.
"We're fine," whispered Ginny, then leaned back and giggled.
"Oh, you!" huffed Hermione, and sat back, crossing her arms in annoyance.
"Gin, I'm – oh, hi Hermione," greeted Harry, entering the kitchen. He looked at the wine on the table and grinned. "Starting early, are we?"
"You off then?" asked Ginny, ignoring his teasing, but before he could say anything she called out, "Wait! Twirl for me!" She indicated with her index finger that he spin around.
He looked at her in confusion but complied, blushing when she wolf whistled at him.
"Those jeans make your arse look so good," praised Ginny. "Don't you think so, Hermione?"
"Erm, sure, I guess," replied Hermione.
"You didn't even look," accused Ginny.
Hermione sighed and looked at Harry in his jeans. Harry obliged by turning around and wriggling his arse while looking over his shoulder at her, winking.
"Very nice," she commented dryly.
"We definitely have to go back to that store and get you more pants," declared Ginny.
She stood and took his hand, walking him to the fireplace in the lounge.
Hermione didn't mean to eavedrop but they weren't exactly talking about anything private, no, it was more their tone.
"Have fun with Teddy," she heard Ginny say.
"Ha, you heard Andromeda the other night," chuckled Harry. "He's becoming a threenager."
"Well, he always cheers up when he's with you," soothed Ginny. "Don't forget to mention to Andi about having him sleep over here sometime, yeah?"
"I will," promised Harry. "I should only be gone a couple hours or so."
"It's okay, Hermione and I will manage something for dinner. I rather fancy a curry. Don't rush home if Teddy needs you," she offered.
Harry then lowered his tone to something Hermione had never heard before from him.
"And what about you?" he asked, huskily. "What do you need?"
Hermione's eyes widened and she looked through the door to see the two of them snogging, with Harry's hands on Ginny's hips, and her arms around his neck.
She watched on as Harry whispered something in her ear that made her grin and then he was gone in a whoosh of flames.
Hermione quickly pretended to be engrossed in opening the dip and cutting up some cheese, as a content Ginny strode in with a huge smile on her face.
"God that man can snog!" she exclaimed, then looked at Hermione shrewdly. "So, was there anything in particular you wanted to ask about Harry and me?" she asked.
She opened the wine bottle and poured two glasses, sliding one to Hermione, who immeditely began stroking the stem of the glass.
"You two seem great together," she commented, inwardly wincing at her lame statement. She shoved a loaded cracker in her mouth.
Ginny shrugged. "We are. Things are good. How are you and Ron?"
"We're good," nodded Hermione, taking a sip of her wine.
"What's this really about, Hermione?" asked Ginny, confused.
Hermione sighs. "Look, I don't want you to take this the wrong way, but I worry about Harry. I've been worrying about Harry pretty much since we were eleven and it's hard to stop."
"What exactly are you worried about, Hermione?" asks Ginny coolly.
Hermione's eyes widened at her friend's tone.
"Oh – God, no, I've messed this up, I'm sorry," she said, in a rush. " I'm not worried about the two of you, not really, you're great together. You're just what Harry needs."
"And just what does Harry need, exactly?" drawls Ginny, drinking her wine.
"This!" cries Hermione, knowing she's messing this up. She gestures to the kitchen. "That!" She points to the lounge.
Ginny crinkles her nose, not understanding. "Huh?" She looks to the empty lounge.
" The jeans, the twirling. The kisses and cuddling on the sofa," rattles off Hermione.
Ginny looks taken aback. "I'm sorry, I didn't realise it bothered you that I show him affection...but I won't stop," she told her, defiantly.
Hermione pinched the bridge of her nose and breathed deeply.
" It doesn't bother me, Ginny, really. I am saying this all wrong. I love that you're so affectionate with Harry, I think it's what he needs. But I'm worried that he" – she took another deep breath – " won't, or can't, reciprocate that affection to you."
Ginny blinks. " Pardon?"
"We know he had a horrible upbringing with the Dursley's, never knowing familial love or support," began Hermione.
"The opposite, actually," said a grim faced Ginny. Her fingers itched to go to Surrey and hex the three Dursley's, even if Dudley had reached out in truce to Harry over the past year.
" Exactly," concurred Hermione. " I used to wonder if he had a fear of being touched. It's common, when the only touch one has experienced has been..." She wondered how to say it delicately.
"One of pain?" suggested Ginny.
"Yes. Even at Hogwarts, he would flinch and tense when being touched, even by Madame Pomfrey when she was treating him for injuries," she nodded.
"I've seen you hug him," reminded Ginny.
"It took him years for him to not tense when I hugged him, and he rarely hugged me back," corrected Hermione. " Then, in sixth year when hormones were running rampant at Hogwarts, I was spending a lot of time with Harry when Ron was off with Lavender, and I began to wonder what Harry would be like when he finally found someone. Would he be able to accept a loving touch? Could he give one back? I guess what I'm really asking about is –"
"Intimacy," interrupted Ginny.
Hermione let out a breath of relief. "Yes, intimacy. I wouldn't have been surprised if Harry had a problem with intimacy...but from what I've seen, my concerns are moot."
Ginny leaned in, a look of mischief on her face. "So you don't want to know any juicy details?"
"Ginny!" Hermione looked affronted at the very thought, and took a sip of her wine.
"Maybe what you really want is sex advice," suggested Ginny. She sighed in exaggerated pity. " Is Ron not – "
"Ginny," gasped Hermione, turning red. She looked uncomfortable. "Ron is perfectly fine in bed, thank you."
"Perfectly fine? That sounds incredibly dull. Perhaps he needs to read some of those sex books of yours for inspiration," suggested Ginny, refilling both their glasses.
"S-sex books? I don't know what you mean," stammered Hermione, blushing furiously.
Ginny chuckled. "Harry and I found one down the side of the sofa. Gave us a few ideas. It even has diagrams, that should help Ron," she teased.
"Ginny stop," protested Hermione, half laughing, half mortified.
"All right, all right," soothed Ginny, spearing some cheese with a toothpick. " How about – you don't ask me about Harry's and my sex life, and I won't ask you about yours and Ron's," she suggested.
"Yes," gasped Hermione, grateful for the reprieve. " In fact, let's forget this conversation ever happened."
"Agreed! Now, are we getting curry or curry for take away tonight?" asked Ginny.
"Curry it is," laughed Hermione. "Let me get the menu and I'll ring and order, shall I?"
Ginny nodded and Hermione stood to grab the menu's from the kitchen drawer. They selected what they wanted and Hermione went outside to use her mobile phone to place her order. She also sent a quick text message to her parents, confirming plans for lunch the next day.
She returned inside Grimmauld Place and the kitchen, where Ginny was finishing her wine.
" They said fifteen minutes. Want to walk over with me?" she asked.
"Sure, sounds good," nodded Ginny. " We can talk more about your sex books on the way."
"Ginny, I thought we agreed the conversation was over," blushed Hermione.
" All right, all right," laughed Ginny.
"Let me just go change into some walking shoes and we'll leave," suggested Hermione, preparing to leave the kitchen.
"Oh, Hermione?" called Ginny, just as she left. " Just one more thing."
Hermione popped her head around the door jamb.
"You know when Harry started at Hogwarts and he didn't know anything about flying or Quidditch?" asked Ginny.
Hermione nodded. "Turned out to be a natural, didn't he?" she replied, somewhat proudly.
"Yeah, well, flying and Quidditch aren't the only things Harry is naturally good at...if you get my drift?" winked Ginny.
"What? What are you...OH! Ginny! I did not need to know that!" laughed Hermione.
"But now you do," remarked Ginny, with a huge grin, " and you can't un-know it."
"Obliviate me now," groaned Hermione.